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So, you want to blog? Now that you have ideas for a badass blog and a badass plan of execution for your content, you need badass blog branding and a badass website. That’s the third part of this series.

Why, though, do you need a badass brand with a badass website when there are so many free platforms out there? In one word, credibility. In more words, the look & feel of your blog will go a long way in establishing trust, which will solidify a fan base and frequently returning readers. I could talk for days about why it’s important! The point is that your logo and brand will be the first interaction you have with your readers. First impressions count!

What is a brand?

For starters, your brand is more than just a pretty logo. Your brand is your logo, yes…but it’s more than that. It’s how you present yourself & your blog, the tone you carry throughout your posts, and the other elements that go along with your logo, like matching social buttons, coordinating colors, and so on. I could get into far more on what a brand is, but for the purpose of this series, your brand should consist of your blog’s aesthetic, and how you are presenting yourself. Make sense? Great, let’s continue!

What should I do about that?

You should research some of this stuff, for starters. Pinterest is a great repository for brand ideas and inspiration. You’ll begin to form ideas of what you like and what your preferences are. Once you establish that there’s a pattern with your preferences, consider how a brand containing those specific things might be perceived by your future readers. If it feels like a good fit, you’ve done most of the work already! If it doesn’t seem like it meshes well, do some research on what similar blogs have branded as. Don’t copy them, or ask your designer to copy them, but take notes about specific things they’ve done. What makes you want to hang around and read the blog?

Where can I get one of those brands?

Shameless plug, obviously. You had to know this was coming. We have stuff for every budget here at Autumn Lane Paperie. I’d encourage you to set your budget for your brand and website ahead of time, and also consider what you might need so that you’re able to plan it out.

Oh right, a website.

WordPress is badass. Learn it, use it, love it. I suggest a self-hosted WordPress website, and I would also recommend forgoing the free blogging platforms. Super convenient, and such a great idea, but if your aim is to blog, gain a following, and make this into something full time, you’ll establish more credibility by spending a bit — get your own domain, get hosting. Don’t get stuck with a www.awesomeblogidea.ickyblogplatform.com web address. Isn’t www.awesomeblogidea.com a much more visually pleasing web address?

There are many free themes, or low cost themes, that are out there so that you can have a great looking blog with some customization options. If you want fully custom, though, drop us a line. A custom website can go a long way for a business. The same holds true for a blog. Always with that credibility. You wouldn’t wear pajamas to a job interview, right? Why would you NOT put your best foot forward with this new venture, too, by having something that looks amazeballs?

How do I set my budget?

I would recommend setting your budget based on how involved you intend for your blogging to become. If this is more of a passive hobby, you might want to consider a smaller budget. If you plan to blog full time, monetize, and make a real go at it, spending a bit more at the outset would be advisable. Why? It goes back to that word: credibility. If you have grand plans, the more credibility you can gain, the better. The sooner you can create trust in your brand, the better chances of success.

So, now you have a badass idea for a blog, right? You should also have a badass plan for what you want your blog to be all about. Hopefully, after this post, you’re going to start forming ideas for a badass brand. I’ll be going over the fourth part of this series soon — a second plan.

So, you want to blog? Now that you have an idea, you need a plan. It has to be a badass plan for your badass blog. Duh!

The biggest part of your plan will be content. Content is this. Look around. It’s the stuff you write, the subjects you talk about, and the info you’re putting out there. Unless you’re heading down the lifestyle blog path where you detail your day to day, you’ll likely need to plan out your content. That’s not the same as planning your blog posts, just so you know.

When I say “planning blog content” I mean gathering up topics & information to write about. If you’re planning an informational type blog, you might need to plan for research, too. The planning your posts part is more like scheduling your posts once you have the content written.

Other parts of your plan should include your brand and your future website.

Brain Dump

The first part of your plan should be a brain dump. This’ll probably occur over a time span, and not one single sit-down session. When I say “brain dump,” I mean that you should jot down all of your ideas for your blog, no matter what it’s about. I would suggest dividing your dump into a few different sections: content ideas, brand + website ideas, and other possibilities.

I write down ideas that I have ALL the time. Most of my ideas go into my Notes app. Since I use Apple products, I can add them to my phone on the go, my desktop machine as I’m working, my laptop as I’m blogging, or on my iPad if I’m using it. They all sync up, so I have the same notes no matter where I go.

I also use my Limelife Planner. Sometimes, as I’m working through my day’s to-do list, I’ll have a stroke of genius that I need to scrawl out, or put onto my schedule. Writing down your ideas will be key, even after you’ve done your brain dump. Don’t just write down one or two words about your idea. Give a little detail and depth so that you don’t forget where you were headed with it.

Refine

After you’ve let your various ideas simmer, it’s time to refine things. What fits, and what doesn’t? What should you let go of? Are these ideas you’re letting go of still great ideas you can incorporate later?

Vision + Mission Statement

Most businesses have a vision and a mission statement. Well, at least, they should have those things! In the simplest terms possible, a vision is the goal, and the mission statement is the plan to execute. Your blog should have a vision and a mission statement, too!

It could look something like this:

The goal of Autumn Lane Paperie’s blog is to empower and connect with other like-minded business owners (vision) by providing easy to digest information and experiences in a down-to-earth, relatable manner (mission).

What I’ve Done So Far

My blog content planning was pretty willy-nilly and all over the place at first. I’ve been rolling around the idea of blogging for years. I actually started a few times, but it sort of dropped off because life happened, or because I wasn’t entirely certain that I wanted to open up all areas of my personal life. (The blogs were definitely more of a lifestyle/family type of blog, and I think my kids should have privacy, so I sort of just stopped blogging and telling stories.) I thought that a business-related personal-ish blog was a great solution, but it turns out, we really want to provide information to people and help them with their business ventures. So, Autumn Lane’s blog is really the best avenue for that!

Once I started to realize the type of blog I would enjoy writing, I realized that a lot of it was business-heavy. We (my husband and I) have a great deal of experience in the business world with both failed and successful businesses, a ton of combined experiences to share, and we’re also regular people working to feed a family and have fun.

I want to share those experiences as a mom + wife, a family person, a student, and business woman. I want to share experiences and recommendations with people, and also have a way to look back on some memories made, connect with others over them, and so on.

In addition to the business related posts that I knew I would have, I realized I would also have a lot of great insight on branding. It is what I do everyday, after all! Some of the other things I want to write about include things that make my life easier (who doesn’t like that type of info?), organization, and food + travel.

As I realized the type of things I wanted to write about, I realized my blog was beginning to take shape as a business + lifestyle blog. I have a ton to say about running a business, but I say it from a busy mom’s perspective. Autumn Lane was born because I wanted to be there for & provide for my family.

I also really love the idea of being able to show that there are real people behind what we do at Autumn Lane Paperie. Sometimes, business takes on a much-too-professional and sterile feel, and that’s just not me! While we do provide professional level services and products, we’re pretty casual people over here. I connect better with my clients when I’m communicating like *myself* and not someone trying to *sound* professional. Creating better connections leads to better brands, plain & simple!

In the next So, You Want to Blog? series, we’ll be taking a look at making the actual *badass blog* happen! We’ll touch on the website and branding aspect of your future blog!

So, you want to blog? We’re coming up on a new year, and it seems like it’s a great time to try something new. A fresh start, fresh ideas, and a ton of motivation because there’s just something about going from 2016 to 2017 that makes people crazy! I’ve been planning this badass blog for months, and 2017 is *the time* to make it happen.

Follow me on my journey through blogging! This multi-part series will take you through the steps that I’ve gone through in order to become more consistent with blogging here at Autumn Lane. Blogging is something that I’ve thought about for a really long time. Like, really long! I loved journaling as a teen, and loved the ease of blogging online with free blog services. I’ve started (and stopped) blogging many times. Time has always been a factor, as has the purpose of the blog and whether or not I had an audience.

I’ve read blogs and have looked at articles, hoping to find that magic combination of what big name bloggers do in order to gain followers + readers, and even monetizing. Guess what? I haven’t found that magic combination, but I’m hopeful that with enough time & effort, I’ll find it myself!

First, you need an idea for a blog. Not just any blog…a badass blog.

What’s the big idea?

Blogging can take any shape or form. You can blog about fashion, food, or travel. There are even blogs that are photography blogs, poetry and/or story blogs. Personal or lifestyle blogs are some of my favorites, too.

Chances are, your bright idea for your blog already exists. Don’t be discouraged by this; use this as an opportunity to put your own spin on it. Define the genre you want to be a part of, but understand that you’re not totally tied to this.

I’m a combo of business + lifestyle.

What are the details?

The details are the fun part, and how you plan to set yourself apart from the others. Travel blogs are everywhere, and there are a ton of lifestyle blogs out there where people write about the daily grind. What will be different about your blog? What are the major things you want to accomplish with your blog?

I want to author content that helps small businesses & other designers. I also want to provide a real glimpse into the crazy life of a business owner that also happens to be a mom, wife, learner, and creative. Autumn Lane as a whole takes an authentic approach to business – we find that relationships are key to developing a solid brand. As a result, we want to make it easy to get to know us, and we want to get to know you, too. That’s why you’ll find candid discussion in some of our blog posts.

Take it, and run with it.

Don’t stop at a single idea. You can edit your ideas later, and decide what will work, and what will not. Dream up some crazy stuff, because you can figure out the “How?” later.